196 
a-  and  fi-Eucaine . 
Am.  .Tour.  Pharm. 
April,  1902. 
the  strychnine  group,  and  especially  do  they  very  closely  resemble 
cocaine.  The  bases  themselves  are  readily  soluble  in  benzine, 
chloroform,  ether,  chloroform-ether,  petroleum-ether  or  gasoline, 
and  amyl  alcohol.  They  can  be  easily  extracted  from  their  salts  by 
rendering  their  solutions  in  water  slightly  alkaline  with  ammonia 
and  shaking  out  with  any  of  the  above  solvents.  This  extraction  is, 
however,  most  rapidly  accomplished  with  light  petroleum  distillates 
or  with  ether.  a-Eucaine  m-lts  at  1030,  /9-eucaine  at  91  °,  and 
cocaine  at  98  °.  In  following  out  any  scheme  of  analysis  of  the 
alkaloids  they  will  probably  always  be  found  where  cocaine  would 
be  expected,  and  their  identification  becomes  essentially  a  separation 
from  each  other  and  cocaine,  a-  and  /9-eucaine  are  sold  in  the  form 
of  their  hydrochlorides,  and  it  is  upon  this  salt  that  most  of  the  tests 
for  their  identification  should  be  made.  As  usually  prepared,  a- 
and  /9-eucaine  hydrochlorides  are  white  powders,  identical  in  appear- 
ance.   They  are,  however,  easily  crystallizable. 
a-Eucaine  hydrochloride  melts  at  about  2000  C.  and  decomposes 
at  the  same  time.  It  is  soluble  at  ordinary  temperature  in  about 
ten  times  its  weight  of  water,  solubility  varying  with  temperature. 
It  is  more  soluble  in  hot  water,  from  which  it  crystallizes  out  to  an 
approximately  10  per  cent,  solution  on  cooling.  It  is  soluble  in 
about  its  own  weight  of  alcohol,  10  grammes  requiring  from  8  to  9 
grammes  of  alcohol  for  solution.  It  is  but  slightly  soluble  in  ether  or 
olive  oil,  but  glycerol  dissolves  it  much  the  same  as  water. 
/9-Eucaine  hydrochloride  melts  at  2680  C.  with  decomposition. 
At  ordinary  temperatures  it  is  soluble  in  water  to  the  extent  of 
about  3  per  cent.,  but  is  more  than  twice  as  soluble  in  hot  water, 
from  which  most  of  the  excess  crystallizes  slowly  after  cooling.  Its 
solubility  in  alcohol  is  greater  than  in  water,  or  about  1 1  per  cent., 
varying  somewhat  with  the  temperature.  This  comparative  insolu- 
bility is  one  of  its  chief  characteristics,  especially  differing  from 
cocaine  hydrochloride,  which  dissolves  in  less  than  its  own  weight  of 
either  water  or  alcohol.    It  is  almost  insoluble  in  ether  or  olive  oil. 
REACTIONS  IN  WHICH  THE  HYDROCHLORIDES  OF  a-EUCAINE,  /9-EUCAINE 
AND  COCAINE  ACT  ALIKE. 
Mayer's  reagent  gives  with  either  a-  or  /9-eucaine  a  light  yellow- 
ish amorphous  precipitate. 
Wagner's  reagent  gives  a  voluminous  reddish  brown  precipitate 
even  in  dilute  solutions. 
